Dog Obedience Training Tips

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Dog Obedience Training Tips

In this article we’ll discuss the pros and cons of sending your dog to obedience school versus doing it yourself at home.

Whether you’re a new dog owner or you’ve had your dog for quite some time chances are thoughts of dog obedience training have come up.

After all, some commands are easy to train, especially when there is the promise of food, however other commands – the ones that really matter – may be more difficult to train. So the question is…do you go it alone or do you employ a dog obedience training specialist?

Dog Obedience Training – Sending Your Dog to Obedience School

It’s tempting, very tempting, to turn to the expertise of others when your dog needs obedience training. After all, it’s like changing the oil on your car right? You could do it yourself but it’s much more time effective to have someone else do the work. Time is money and dog obedience takes time.

Of course not all trainers are created equal. In fact some are just plain awful and can cause more problems than they solve. You’ll want to investigate the trainer and the training methods they use. You’ll also want to check references.

Finally, you’ll probably want to compare fees to make sure you’re getting your money’s worth. This however should be your last step because a good trainer is worth what they charge.

That being said, you’ll also need to know that you’re 50% of the dog obedience training equation. After all, you’re the one who lives with the dog so you’re going to be doing much of the work. Your trainer is there to guide you along the way. To give you information, correct your technique and help you hurdle the obedience training obstacles before they arise.

Dog Obedience Training – Doing it Yourself

There are of course benefits to training your dog yourself. You can:

Train them when it’s convenient for you

Train them in a manner which fits your personality, beliefs, and philosophies

Know your dog is in trusted hands

And save money

That being said, dog obedience training requires a lot of knowledge about animal behavior and dog training techniques. It also requires a number of props, depending on the level of training, and certainly a large amount of patience and fortitude – your dog is not going to ‘get it’ the first time you ask them to perform a command. In fact they may not ‘get it’ the hundredth time you ask them to perform a command.

This means you’ll need a good education on both what to expect from your dog and how to go about training them. You’ll need to choose a training philosophy and techniques. There are wonderful books available at the library and bookstore and there are dog training videos. These resources can be valuable however it’s important to evaluate the information carefully.

To skip this step could mean valuable wasted time and money but worse than that it could mean using techniques which end up causing your dog to become frustrated, confused or worse, aggressive.

The Happy Medium

At this point you may be scratching your head and still wondering which is better – train them yourself or send them to dog obedience training school? The answer lies both in your training goals and abilities.

If you’re looking to show your dog competitively then hiring a trainer may be a great idea. However if you’re looking for a well behaved family dog then taking on dog obedience training yourself may be just the ticket.

There is perhaps a happy medium. Consider dog obedience training on your own using the reference materials from expert dog trainers. These reference materials most often come in the form of books and videos.

If a trainer offers both, then that’s a great sign. It shows they understand both types of learners and the importance of truly understanding obedience training techniques before you begin training.

Dog obedience training is an important step in dog ownership. Not only are the basic commands like sit and stay important. Dog obedience training gives dogs control of their environment and prevents fear and aggression.

It establishes dominance and a family hierarchy and it socializes your dog so they feel able to handle any situation they encounter. Whether you choose to go it alone or send your dog to an expert dog obedience training is an important decision, choose wisely.

Dog Obedience Training
Dog Obedience Training Information